Emails show Justice Department official overseeing Clinton probe has close ties to Podesta

A Department of Justice official who notified Congress Monday that the agency would "dedicate all necessary resources" to the reopened Hillary Clinton email investigation has a close relationship with campaign chair John Podesta, hacked emails show.

Peter Kadzik, assistant attorney general, sent his son to seek a job on the Clinton campaign given his personal relationship with Podesta. He was invited to a small birthday gathering for Podesta's lobbyist brother last year. Kadzik also dined with Podesta at his home in January, when the first FBI probe was well underway.

Emails made public by WikiLeaks over the past several weeks raise fresh questions about the Justice Department's handling of an investigation into a case with such close ties to the agency's leadership. Just one week before FBI Director James Comey closed the original Clinton email probe in July, Attorney General Loretta Lynch's private meeting with Clinton's husband sparked a wave of outrage that ultimately clouded the Justice Department's decision to end the investigation.

In 2008, Podesta raved about Kadzik to Cassandra Butts, a member of President Obama's transition team, and noted Kadzik was "willing to help" with vetting for Obama's Cabinet.

"Fantastic lawyer. Kept me out of jail," Podesta wrote of Kadzik.

Comey's announcement Friday that his agents planned to pursue an investigation into newly uncovered emails has scrambled the presidential race with just one week to go before Election Day.

Clinton has emphatically denied that the bureau has any case against her. The emails in question were discovered on a laptop used by Huma Abedin, Clinton's former deputy chief of staff and current vice campaign chairwoman, through a separate sexual misconduct investigation involving Abedin's estranged husband, Anthony Weiner.

The Kadzik connection is not the only one to have raised eyebrows in recent weeks.

Andrew McCabe, second in command at the FBI, has come under scrutiny for the campaign donations his wife received from Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a longtime Clinton ally.

However, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that McCabe pushed back on Justice Department leadership when officials discouraged his agents from pursuing a year-long investigation into the Clinton Foundation. McCabe also reportedly recused himself from Clinton-related probes given his wife's ties to McAuliffe, who is also under FBI investigation for unrelated campaign finance allegations.